corridors of power
by Runaway Shadow
Summary: Anakin dies in a space accident, but his body is never recovered. But did he really die or are there more things involved. Seven years after is death Tahiri finds out the truth. (UPDATER 9/7)
1. Default Chapter

CORRIDORS OF POWER   
  
  
Time frame: I don't know actually. Probably sometime after Junior Jedi Knights.   
If you read the story it will all become clear.   
  
PG rating: 13   
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars or the main characters. I do own the characters I made up…  
hehehehe.   
  
Story line: Anakin dies in a space accident, but his body is never recovered. But did he   
really die or are there more things involved. Seven years after is death Tahiri finds out the   
truth.   
  
Author's notes: this story is AU, the Vong invasion is never going to happen in is this story. Well, at least I don't think so. Don't know exactly where this story is going. You just have to read and find out… This first few chapters are probably really weird, but just hang tight. All your questions will be answered.   
  
  
  
DRAMATIS PERSONAE   
  
Anakin Solo; Jedi Knight (male human)   
Tahiri Veila; Jedi Knight (female human)   
Jaina Solo; Jedi Knight (female human)   
Jacen Solo; Jedi Knight (male human)   
Leia Organa Solo; Republic Ambassador (female human)   
Han Solo; captain, Millennium Falcon (male human)   
Chewbacca; male Wookie   
Luke Skywalker; Jedi Master (male human)   
Mara Jade Skywalker; Jedi Master (female human)   
  
  
  
  
CHAPTER ONE  
  
"What do you mean 'Gone to Coruscant?'" the angry voice of Han Solo asked.   
Luke sighed. "I don't know Han. He didn't say anything; he just left on a merchant ship.   
He told Tahiri to tell me he'd gone to Coruscant because the Force told him to go there.   
Tahiri said she wanted to come along, but Anakin refused. Said he had to do this on his own,"   
  
Luke was standing in the comm center of Yavin Four, talking to the miniature holo figures of   
Han and Leia Organa Solo. His sister was worried. He didn't need the Force to tell that.   
"I don't like this Luke, not one bit," his sister said in a worried voice.   
  
"I don't like it either, Leia, but there is nothing we can do except wait until he arrives at  
Coruscant," he told her in a calm voice. He had a bad feeling about this, but he didn't tell   
her that. It would only upset her further. As Chief of State, she was extremely protective of   
her children. Sometimes she was just a bit overprotective, but he couldn't blame her given what  
had already happened to the twins and to Anakin. Abductions, attacks, it was a long list of   
incidents. She had the right to be overprotective.   
  
"Leia, Han, I have to go. I have a class to teach in an hour, but I first want to check the ship   
Anakin left on." From what Tahiri had told him, Anakin left on a Corellian freighter called A   
Destiny Chosen. "I'll contact you as soon as I know more," he told the worried parents.   
As he walked away from the comm-center, he thought about the situation. It wasn't like Anakin   
to just leave. It wasn't like Anakin at all to leave without Tahiri. Still, he knew that once   
the headstrong thirteen-year-old made up his mind, nothing could stop him. He just hoped all   
would end well.   
  
  
Tahiri was lying on her bed. Not sure what to do. In the two years she'd know Anakin,   
he'd never done anything like this before. They did everything together. They trained together,  
hung out after classes together; they even raided the kitchen together. Even when Anakin was   
home he used to contact her everyday, if he didn't forget. It just wasn't like him to leave so   
suddenly. She found out when it was too late. Master Skywalker had said the freighter Anakin   
was on would dock on Coruscant tomorrow night, but it didn't feel right. So to comfort herself   
she reached out with the Force. She felt his presence not far from here; he felt her too and   
sent her a reassuring feeling. It comforted her for a moment, but then she felt him panic.   
She shot up from her bed. "Anakin," she gasped. She concentrated and reached out once more.  
She got the sense something was wrong with the ship. Through Anakin's feelings she figured out   
it was on fire. She got a blur of images from him. He was with several other people. They had   
trouble breathing because of the smoke. There was chaos all around him. Something was   
not right; she received mixed feelings from him. He couldn't do anything, it was a no-win   
situation. She tried to reassure him by brushing her presence with his when she suddenly   
felt a burst of pain erupting in her chest. It overloaded all her senses. The pain was   
overwhelming. It took control of her body; she had to break her connection with Anakin.  
After she broke the connection, she used a Jedi technique to calm herself down,   
but it didn't work, she was too worried for Anakin. The pain had come from him. When the pain   
left her body she tried to reach out to him once more, but Anakin wasn't there. In panic she   
searched for him with the Force, but his presence was nowhere to be found. She fell down on   
her bed, sobbing uncontrollably and screaming "Anakin's gone!"   
  
Later she would vaguely remember Kam and Tionne in her room, trying to calm her down, but   
she couldn't. Her only friend and soul mate was gone. She would never feel whole again.   
Anakin Solo was gone and he was never coming back. 


	2. C2

SEVEN YEARS LATER...  
  
  
There are some things that you just don't forget, and this was one of them.   
I was sitting in a café on the edge of a town on a planet not many people knew about.   
From my cozy seat in the back of the establishment, I was watching one of my best friends   
hitting on a girl, but from what I was seeing, he wasn't succeeding. Terry was the womanizer   
of the team, although it got him more trouble than it did girls. Still, no matter how many   
times he failed, he never gave up. Usually one would say this is a good quality, but in Terry's  
case, it wasn't. I had been watching him for a couple of minutes and it didn't look good for him.  
What Terry hadn't noticed was the fact that the petite brunette came with a boyfriend who wasn't  
too happy that Terry was hitting on his girl. As I watched the guy steadily sneaking up behind   
Terry I shook my head and got up. Time to fish him out of trouble.   
  
I walked over, under while snagging two drinks from the tray of a servant droid, who promptly   
began to protest. I put the drink under Terry's nose and settled down in the barstool next to   
him. "Terry," I said while giving him a playful smile, "you are in big trouble,"   
  
He returned the smile and said, "Am I now?"   
  
I gave him a serious nod. "Didn't your mom ever teach you it's bad to hit on women who are   
already taken?"   
  
Now he looked thoughtful when he said, "I think she mentioned that once or twice."   
  
"Then your mother was a wise woman," an angry voice bellowed from behind Terry.   
  
Terry slowly turned to regard the man and he took his time looking from the top of his head to   
the soles of his feet, as if judging him. Then he said, "Yes she was."   
  
The man got even redder, if that was possible. He bellowed, "I'm going to make you regret you   
never listened to her!"   
  
"Now, now," I shushed getting up to stand in between the two men, "We don't want to fight, it's   
too hot for that. Why don't we all sit down, have a drink and forget this ever happened?"   
By the look on the man's face, one nasty look, he didn't like my idea. So I looked at him   
innocently and asked, "No hug?"   
I dogged just in time to avoid his right hook that slammed into the wooden post beside me.   
A look of pain appeared on the man's face, but he wasn't ready to give up. While I saw Terry   
was hastily avoiding a steel bat hurled at him by one of the man's friends, I narrowly avoided   
another attack.   
  
We were attracting way too much attention. The café's other occupants hastily left the   
establishment, leaving Terry and I behind with two raging gundarks. I didn't like attention;   
we most definitely could do without. So while avoiding punches I thought of options that could   
get us out of there without being arrested; I could think of only one, since that man was beyond reasoning. His girlfriend was standing in a corner shouting for him and his friend to stop, but they didn't. Terry was still avoiding the steel bat constantly swung at his head.   
Okay, this has end, now, I thought. So, I did the only thing left for me to do. The next time   
the man threw a punch at me, instead of ducking, I blocked the punch with my left hand and gave   
the man a hard punch in the nose with my right hand. I felt a bone breaking as soon as my hand   
collided and blood erupted from his nose. The man ceased his attack and fell to the ground   
gripping his nose.   
  
If I thought this was going to end the riot, I was wrong. His girlfriend stopped her shouts to   
quit the fight and looked at me, surprised. Uh oh, I thought, not good.   
The next thing I knew she was hurling things at me, plates, vases, you name it, anything she   
could get her hands on. We had to get out of there, and quickly. I shot Terry a look and was   
relieved to see he had managed to overcome his attacker. "We have to get out of here, now,"   
I told him, narrowly avoiding a vase thrown at my head.   
  
"Yeah," he said while looking amused by what he saw.   
  
In the distance, I could hear the sirens of the local law enforcement. I avoided another plate   
thrown at me before we could escape the establishment. We ran into the maze of alleys.   
  
After we waited a few hours, we returned to the ship that acted as our temporary headquarters.   
I ignored the comments of the other team members and headed straight for my cabin, where I fell   
on the bed, exhausted. Though the adrenaline still pumped through my veins, it didn't take long   
before I fell asleep. 


	3. Chapter three

CHAPTER THREE  
  
The fire was spreading fast. It blocked all the exits, there was no way out. He was panicking now. Where was the crew? Everyone in the main hall was panicking. People were running around pushing others out of there was. Some fainted, some screamed, some fainted and some broke down and cried. Chaos was all around.  
  
The heat and smoke were almost unbearable now. He couldn't stand much more. He needed fresh air. He tried to use a Jedi calming technique, but it didn't work. He almost couldn't breathe anymore. He had to get out of here, but how? All exists were blocked by huge fires. Was this the end? He couldn't die this way. Why had the Force sent him here? There had to be a reason. Had he made the wrong decision? Should he have stayed on Yavin Four? Safe with his uncle in the Jedi Academy? All these questions erupted in his mind. He had done what the Force told him to. Well not exactly told him, only that he had to go to Coruscant. It was almost similar as the dream he and his best friend Tahiri shared back when he first met her., but this was no dream.   
  
Tahiri… He felt her presence brushing with his. She knew something was wrong. He should never have gone. Just as he was thinking this, there was an explosion not far from him. The he was hit by something big that smacked at his chest. The last thing he remembered was a masked head hovering around him, and then everything went black… [/i]  
  
I awoke with a start. Why did I have that dream? It was seven years ago and I didn't have a dream like that in a few years now. I took a few deep breaths to calm myself. Involuntarily my mind wandered back to the day after the accident.  
  
  
  
  
I awoke in a white room, which looked like it was a hospital room. The room was so white it hurt my eyes. The first thing I noticed was the fact I was cut of from the Force. There was nothing. It was like a piece of me was missing. This must be how Uncle Luke felt when he was on Myrkr. The Force dampened planet. Ysalamari! That must be why I had no Force connection. I felt a little more relaxed. This meant I was not dead! But where were mom and dad? And Jacen, Jaina and not to mention Chewie? Why weren't they here? Maybe they haven't been able to come over yet. Or maybe they don't know you're awake.   
  
While I was thinking of all the possibilities why I was here a man in fancy grey clothes came in to the room. He looked at me relieved. "Good to see you awake Anakin," he said. "You had us worried."   
  
I saw him looking at some monitors; the he turned his attention back to me. "I know this all doesn't make sense, but I'll explain everything to you as soon as my colleague gets here. She's always later. In the meantime, I'm Kinnon."  
He came over and shook my hand.  
  
Now I was really confused. This man acted like there was nothing to worry about, like I hadn't been in a freak accident... How long was it? "How long have I been here?" I asked him confused.  
  
"A week. You were unconscious. For a while we thought you weren't going to make it, but you pulled through. You're a though one, kid."   
  
Just as I about to launch another question at him, a tall woman dressed in a black dress entered the room. She was much younger than Kinnon who was maybe in his forty's, and she dressed better too. She smiled at me and said; "Good to see you in the land of the living, Anakin." She spoke in a heavy accent. "I'm Jamilla."  
  
Apparently I looked really lost and confused. But then again, I was lost and confused. I had no idea what was going on and who all these strange people are.  
  
"Anakin," Jamilla started, "You and eight other children are the only survivors of the accident last week. The other children have no one left. Only it wasn't an accident. It was a set up. The other eight children were part of a group of witnesses we were supposed to protect. We traveled by merchant ship because we thought it would attract less attention than a highly secured ship, but we were wrong. They found out anyway and we were too late. Hundreds died because we failed to protect a few. Our rescue squad managed to get you to safety. They thought you were part of the group."  
  
I thought fast. "So my family thinks I'm dead? Is that what you are saying?"  
  
"Yes," Kinnon said. "You have to understand, if we announce you, or the other children survived the attack, the terrorist organization will know they survived and come after them to kill them."  
  
"And as long as they think they're dead, they won't," I finished for him. "So what are you going to do next?"  
  
Kinnon smiled. "You're a very smart kid," he said "Well, there are several options. We would like the go through them and see what you think."  
  
I still didn't trust them completely, but they seemed nice. Without the Force I couldn't be sure of anything. For all I know they are that terrorist organization they were telling me about. No if they were they wouldn't have killed me already. They wouldn't even have rescued me. So I played along. "Can I ask you something first?" I asked Kinnon  
  
"Sure, kid. Go ahead." he said  
  
"Why don't I feel the Force? I'm completely cut off. Are we on a Force dampened planet?" I asked  
  
Jamilla smiled slightly. "We can't have you're family thinking you're alive. They would launch a search for you and that would only alert Group C." That was the first time I heard her call the terrorist organization by its name. "Not until we decided what we're going to do. And that's up to you.   
  
  
  
And deciding I did. After they explained the options to me, I understood why the Force had driven me to leave Yavin Four. The Force had driven me here to fight the beast, the beast from within. The New Republic was slowly falling into darkness. It was the same darkness the Force had shown me. [/i]  
  
I was abruptly pulled from my thoughts by a knock on my door 


	4. Chapter four

CHAPTER FOUR   
  
  
Terry walked in my room. He had a worried look on his face. I sighed. I had a feeling I knew where this conversation would be going.   
  
"We need to talk, Anakin," he started and settled in a chair that was close to the bed.  
  
"What about? If it is about me acting before thinking, this conversation is over. You don't need to keep telling me." Terry was my best friend and he meant well, but sometimes he could be a bit too protective. Terry's a few years older than I and automatically thinks he's the boss. When in fact Kinnon is.  
  
"No, it's not about that," Terry rolled his eyes, "This time it's about you acting like you're invincible. You know you could have prevented that fight in the cafe, but you didn't. You wanted to fight. Do you have a death wish or something?"  
  
When I didn't answer him, Terry continued, "Look, Anakin, I know I can sometimes be, well, a bit bossy. Sometimes I don't even know I'm acting that way. But remember this; you're not invincible. Everybody dies." Terry stared directly into my eyes, which made me uncomfortable. Mostly because, a voice in the back of my mind whispered, he was right. I could have prevented the fight, but I hadn't wanted to.   
  
"You should talk about you feeling sometime," Terry continued, "You can't keep them all inside. If you do it will one day all explode. I know you were once a Jedi,"  
When I started to protest, Terry put up his hands in defense, "I know, a Jedi in training. Bu my point is this, you made a choice to never use the Force again. That means you have to talk about what you keep inside."  
  
It was silent for a several minutes. When I made no attempt to talk Terry got up. "Think about what I said, bro. If you ever want to talk, you know where to find me. For now I have assure Kinnon nothing serious happened before he eats us for dinner." With that he started walking away.  
  
I thought about what he said to me and considered his words. "You know what comes up if you search our names in the social security databank?" I suddenly spoke up. Terry turned around. "Deceased," I said. "We don't exist anymore,"  
  
"What's your point?" Terry asked.   
  
"I sometimes wonder if I made the right choice by joining the shadow team and not returning to my family." I said to him, sadness washing over me in waves.  
  
Terry sighed. "You made that choice and now you have to stick with it. It's hard. I wouldn't have wanted to make a decision like that. But didn't you tell me the Force guided you to this?"  
  
"Yeah, but there's a difference between doing the right thing and doing what your heart tells you. I just hope I can return to them one time."   
  
"I know, Anakin. I still miss my parent too. You know, I can't even remember what my mom's face looked like. I have to put her in context, like my last birthday, when she gave me a necklace." He pulled a silver necklace with a small circle formed pendant. "But you can't return to them if you're dead," Terry grinned. Probably did that to hide his sadness. "So behave!"  
  
I also grinned in return. Terry was more sensitive than he let most people show. That he showed the pendant to me and told the story that belonged with the pendant proved that he considered me a close friend. Though the whole team was close, Terry and I were brothers in every way but blood. "Look who's talking!"   
  
Terry gave me an innocent look; one that said; 'who me?' Then shook his head and said, "Common, let's get something to eat, before I talk to Kinnon. You can't argue with him on an empty stomach!" 


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER FIVE   
  
  
I crouched down low behind several barrels. It was dark; if it wasn't for my night-vision binoculars I wouldn't be able to see three meters. But as I looked around the docks, all was quiet. With the exception of a few strange looking birds and the usual amount of New Republic guards for guarding a weapon's depot, no one was there.   
If the intelligence was correct that would soon change.   
  
Shortly after we'd contacted Kinnon, he had dismissed our little escapade and got straight to the point. A substation of Group C, who called themselves counterparts (whoever came up with that name?), were planning to raid a New Republic weapons depot. Not just any weapons depot, the kind where they store chemical and biological weapons. Group C isn't just any terrorist organization. They are the government behind the government. Sort of. They have there tentacles in everything. And I mean everything. The senate, media you name it. And no one knows of their existence. To the galaxy they are known as Group C the Hole Media concern, who holds big fundraisings for the poor. But all of that is not real. It's a big smoke screen to hide who they really are. The money they raise with those fundraisings never make the poor; it's used to plan attacks and supply their soldiers with arms. And the New Republic, not even the NRI, suspect a thing.   
  
That's why Kinnon created the Shadow Team, that's us, to bring them down. Why not expose them for who they really are? It's not that easy. Kinnon tried that once. He had worked for Group C for years, as security for the vice director of the concern. But once he found out what C was really doing, which was killing senators who weren't on their hand or bomb an embassy or release a virus in a public place and blame other terrorist organizations for it, he went public. But no one believed him, not even the Jedi, which I found strange, it made me think whoever was running Group C was not to be messed with. C wasn't run by one man and a board of directives, like the rest of the galaxy thought, but by a group so secret not even Kinnon knew exactly who they were.   
  
To the outside Kinnon runs a business specialized in security. Not even the persons working for him know the business' real purpose. Shadow Team was created mostly with the survivors of the attack on the freighter a destiny chosen . The team consists of eight members including me. It was originally nine, but one child died of wounds after the attack. Though we are a team, Terry is the one I know best. The others like me and trust me with theirs lives, but they find me odd. They can't understand I left my family. Mine were still alive, but theirs were murdered. I can't blame them. Sometimes even I find myself odd.   
  
I was suddenly jerked from my thoughts as I a glimpse of movement caught my eye.   
Showtime, I thought and I signaled the other to get ready. Unnecessarily, because they were already ready to move.   
  
~**~**~**~**~   
  
  
  
As soon as I saw them stepping out of the speeder truck, that this wasn't going to easy. As I watch the four counterpart's members stepping out of the speeder, I saw there was one other man with them and I recognized him as high placed New Republic officer. This changed things. Either he was cooperating with them and was a traitor or he was being held hostage. My look crossed Terry's. We couldn't intervene now. If he was held hostage we had to proceed cautious, but if he was cooperating we had to catch him in the act. I heard Terry's voice through my ear piece. "Hold your position's." The he came up to me. "What do you think?"   
  
I watched from Terry to the counterparts at the gate. They seemed to talk with the guards who were no doubt checking papers. The man looked calm, not at all like a man being held hostage. We moved closer, making sure we kept out of sight. I was no lying flat on my stomach the darkness covering me. Suddenly the man stabbed the New Republic guard in the chest, his hand covering his mouth. The second guard's eyes went wide with surprise, but before he could raise his rifle his neck was snapped by one of the counterparts, a tall Vinx. For a moment I was filled with anger. Then I looked back at Terry who was crouched beside me. "Definitely a traitor," I whispered.   
  
"Let's get these lowlife's," he whispered. Then he opened the com line and said.   
  
"Proceed as planned. Take the office alive."   
  
Everyone acknowledged. We waited for them to load the speeder truck before Terry threw a flash grenade, temporary blinding them. The other leaped forward and worked them to the ground.   
  
"I would read you your rights, except you have none," I heard Ior say to the officer. The always good humored man was now mad, as he was on every mission that involved terrorists and Group C.   
  
While Terry and I kept a lookout several other New Republic guards came running towards us. "Better late than never," Terry said.   
  
Just as I thought the situation was under control, my danger sense flared up. I looked around. At first I saw nothing wrong, but then I saw the officer, who led away by Ior to a second speeder, kick Ior in the stomach and then in the face. He then leapt over his cuffed arm so that they were now in front him. Ior fell to the ground unconscious. The officer then hit the driver of the speeder, who had approached him behind, in the neck and stepped in the speeder. While Terry ran for Ior several others started firing at the departing speeder, but none of their shots stopped the speeder.   
  
Meanwhile I ran for another speeder, a yellow one with a New Republic logo on the front, threw out on of the counterpart's members who was placed in the back and took of after the speeder. I soon caught up, but couldn't pass him in the narrow ally's that led from the docks to the city.   
  
We sped through the ally's, narrowly missing natives who jumped out of the way frightened. The officer wasn't stupid. He knew what would happen to him if he got caught, so he was making sure he wasn't taken, alive anyway.   
  
As we came out of ally that led to a courtyard I thought I had him. I was wrong. The officer turned the speeder around so he was coming straight at me. I narrowly missed him and turned around to follow him. I saw him two blocks farther. He saw me too. He turned around and for a moment I could look in his eyes, then he smacked against a speeder truck that blocked the end of the ally. There was a loud crash before both speeders blew up.   
  
"So much for taking him alive," I muttered and contacted Terry, still watching the scene. Needless to say he wasn't happy the officer was dead, but it couldn't be helped. "Come back for the authority's show up," he said.   
  
I took one last look at the scene and suddenly caught a young blonde woman looking at me stunned. At first I didn't recognize her but then realization struck me and my heart stopped beating.   
  
  
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End file.
